"Under the Sign of the Manticore" by Alexey Pekhov, summary Automatic translate

The novel was co-authored with Elena Bychkova in 2004. It is set in the fictional state of Targera. The architecture and customs of this country are strongly reminiscent of Renaissance Spain. In the novel, magic is the exclusive domain of the Church of the Savior. Heretics use the sorcery of the Tempter. The clerics find them and mercilessly burn them at the stake.

The novel won the Portal Prize in 2005. Mir Fantastiki magazine named it the best domestic fantasy novel of 2004.

The plot begins with a murder. Counterintelligence captain Fernand Ruiz de Suosa travels to Arreda Castle. He goes by the nickname "the basilisk." Fernand finds the murdered cavalry marshal Miguel de Turissano. A red manticore is painted in the dead man’s office. A Peshkhan dagger has disappeared from the armory. The captain meets two high-ranking clerics there: Bishop Miguel de Lerro of the Order of the Blood of Briand and Abbot José Nayarra of the Order of the Harpies. The holy fathers are searching for forbidden books in the marshal’s library. Gendarmerie investigator Horte suspects the killer was acquainted with the Count.

On his way to the capital, Eskarina, Fernand is attacked by mercenaries. Veto, a loyal servant of the counterintelligence agent, is killed in the fight. Fernand kills several of the attackers. One of the enemies uses strange magic and completely destroys the house. The Marquis miraculously survives and returns to his mansion. His beloved wife, Riina, soon arrives there. She is a member of the green-eyed lamia race and commands the privateer frigate "Moon Crocodile." The couple exchange news, and Riina promises to help her husband.

The Mysteries of the Manticore and the Search for a Spy

The head of counterintelligence, Ferdinand Vargas, Count de Bragare, gives Fernand a new mission. The captain must find an elusive Andrade spy named Leonora. This woman is stealing Targuera’s military secrets. Fernand is sent to the grim prison of Roperra to approve death sentences. There, he saves a huge black warrior, Abomey, from the stake. A pagan native of the Land of the Rainy Coast, he swears an unbreakable oath of allegiance to Fernand. Abomey can communicate with the spirits of his ancestors and possesses strange powers.

Events escalate. Unknown mercenaries kill Fernand’s friend, the young lamia Cheyre. Mortally wounded, Cheyre dies right on the doorstep of de Suoz’s house. Blood-stained copies of church documents are found in his clothes. Fernand realizes these are the very papers the clergy were searching for in the murdered marshal’s castle. Abomey defends Fernand’s mansion from further assassins. A black servant summons a powerful spirit. It transforms into the demon baboon Ratannbuta and tears the enemies to pieces. Only one half-breed mercenary, Milena, survives.

Fernand searches for clues. He travels to a military camp near the town of Copa. The captain speaks with Colonel de Caero. It turns out the murdered marshal was conducting his own investigation and nearly captured Leonora. Fernand finds a scrap of paper among the Count’s documents. Written on it are the mysterious words "Leonora," "Fox," and "Coral Reef."

Near the camp, Fernand encounters his old blood enemies. They are young nobles from the powerful de Muor and de Dores families. Many years ago, they mercilessly slaughtered Fernand’s family. The captain challenges the younger de Muor to a duel. The fight takes place on a log of the horse barrier. Fernand lightly wounds the young man and saves his life.

The next day, the Marquis engages in another duel against the Dores fighters. In this fight, Fernand is assisted by the jester César Silva de Armung. The jester kills his opponent, Baron de Caelo, but loses an eye. Fernand fights his sister’s murderer, de Belverdes. In a fierce duel, the captain is wounded but manages to pierce his enemy.

On the way to Escarina, the Dores brothers ambush Fernand. The Marquis and Abomey kill the attackers. Fernand finds medallions depicting a manticore around the necks of the dead men. He begins to suspect the existence of a secret society. The captain believes this mysterious order is directly connected to Leonora.

The revelation of secrets and the beginning of a rebellion

Fernand places the ship "Coral Reef" under surveillance. A red-haired woman is on board. The Marquis assumes she is Leonora. Meanwhile, Andrada’s ambassador, Gerard de Altena, attempts to speak with Fernand in the town square. The ambassador denies his country’s involvement in the attacks on border villages. He hands Fernand a drawing of a manticore and advises him to look for conspirators among the military. At that moment, a street mime stabs the ambassador and escapes. Fernand attempts to pursue the assassin, but he hides behind the walls of a convent.

The death of Ambassador Andrada triggers the outbreak of war. King Carlos the Hunter sets out with an army to the eastern borders. Escarina remains under the control of Duke Lossky’s troops.

Before the denouement, Fernand visits Cardinal José Pablo de Stanuzzi. The old cardinal hints to the Marquis of the immense value of the missing papers and asks him to find them for the Church. Shortly after this conversation, Field Marshal Targhera throws himself from the roof, under the magical control of José Nayarra. That same evening, the cardinal himself suddenly dies. Power over the Church passes to de Lerro.

Fernand ambushed the red-haired woman from the ship. He was assisted by Bishop de Lerro and stern clerical interrogators. The ambush worked, but Leonora was not a woman. The real spy was Count de Bragare’s personal secretary, Jorge. The traitor used the magic of the Tempter, but the clerics captured him alive. The red-haired courier was killed by riflemen.

Fernand finds the original church documents. They were preserved by the armorer’s daughter, Lucretia, who was Sheir’s secret lover. Sheir is raising a young daughter with the slain lamia. The captain hands the documents over to Professor Garte for translation. After reading the text, the scholar hangs himself in horror. Fernand takes the completed translation and reads it in his office.

The documents are the diaries of Sebastian, a companion of the Savior. The text reveals a great secret. The Savior and the Tempter were ordinary mage brothers. Magic lives in one in twenty people. The Savior decided to conceal this knowledge for the sake of his own unlimited power. Clerics block people’s magical "threads" during baptism. They reserve the ability to perform miracles only for themselves. Church dogma is built on ancient lies.

Fernand understands the danger of this knowledge. He decides to keep the secret a secret. The captain accidentally kills his old friend Miguel de Turceco, who turns out to be one of the conspirators. The Marquis wants to know the truth. Abomey helps Fernand perform a terrifying necromantic ritual. A black servant draws white symbols, summons the spirits of the cemetery, and temporarily returns Miguel’s soul to his dead body.

The spirit tells of a conspiracy by Duke Lossky. The conspirators called themselves the Order of the Manticore. They killed peasants in border villages to provoke a war with Andrada. This allowed the Duke to withdraw troops loyal to the king from the capital. The murdered marshal knew of the plot and tried to blackmail Abbot Nayarra with documents. Young de Muora killed the marshal and left the mark of the manticore through his own foolishness.

The capital plunges into bloody chaos. Duke Lossky’s troops begin open rebellion. Fierce fighting erupts in the streets of Escarina. Fernand, Riina, and Duke de Volga’s guards clash with the rebels. Bishop de Lerro denounces the conspirators as heretics. The Church Guard destroys Abbot Nayarra’s order. Nayarra is captured. The royalists achieve victory in Escarina thanks to the artillery of Riina’s corsair frigate.

In the morning, Fernand hands over the originals of Saint Augustine’s papers to Bishop de Lerro. The bishop burns them in a bonfire. He knows the truth will destroy the fragile peace. Fernand denies having read the translation. The captain keeps the secret forever.

The novel ends with a touching scene on the seashore. Fernand and Riina gaze at the towering waves. The rebellion in Escarin has been suppressed, but the civil war in Targher is just beginning. The couple embrace tightly, ready to face the coming trials together.